STORY EXCERPT

Tessa Palmer couldn’t get her fingers to work as she tried to get the front door open. It had been a stupid idea to break into the house in the first place, but she and Nico were so tired and hungry. She had watched the house for two hours without seeing any movement, so she had decided it was worth the risk.

There were no cars in the drive, so she assumed no one was home. To her shock, the front door had been unlocked. At first she thought it was because the house was in the middle of nowhere, but now, Tessa knew exactly why. Instead of a guard dog, whoever lived in the house had a pet lion, a lion of all things. After everything her and Nico had been through, they were about to be eaten by a freaking jungle cat. She screamed when a hand landed on her shoulder.

“It’s okay. I won’t hurt you.” A deep raspy voice came from behind.

Tessa turned and fell against the door, gripping her son tight in her arms. She thought her heart was about to beat out of her chest as she got a look at the man who had grabbed her. He was tall, about six foot five with long, golden hair. In fact, everything about the man was golden, from his hair to his strange gold eyes. Even his skin was a deep, gold color like the man spent most of his time out in the sun. The shorts the man was wearing hung low on his hips, and Tessa couldn’t help but stare at his chest and stomach. He was huge with bulging muscles on top of muscles. She gulped and pulled Nico closer to her. What have I gotten us into?

“Hey,” the man said, holding his hands out as if he could sense her thoughts. “You’re safe here. I promise I won’t hurt you.”

Tessa peeped around the man and sighed in relief when she didn’t see the lion standing there waiting to eat them. “It’s not you I’m worried about. I’m sorry we came in here without permission. We’ll leave and not bother you again.” She gripped the doorknob to leave when the man cleared his throat.

“You aren’t going out there like that.”

The command made Tessa stiffen. “Look, mister. It’s not like we stole anything. The door was unlocked, so we technically didn’t break in. All we wanted was a shower and food, but I would have left you money for whatever we took. No harm no foul. Now, we’ll be on our way.”

“I meant you can’t leave because you don’t have any clothes on.”

The smirk on the man’s face, as he looked her up and down, made Tessa want to smack him, but she was too embarrassed to move. She hadn’t even realized she was naked until he pointed it out. She hadn’t thought of anything but grabbing Nico and getting the hell out of there. Their bags with the money and everything they owned in the world were still lying on the floor in the bedroom upstairs. There was no way she was going back up there to get them with the lion just waiting to have her as a snack, so Tessa was screwed.

“Look, you said you guys were hungry, so why don’t you get dressed while I fix you something to eat.”

Nico’s stomach chose that moment to growl. Looking at her son’s slim, hollowed cheeks and dark circles under his eyes, there was no way she could turn down the offer of food for him. He needed to eat. “Okay, we won’t say no to a meal, but we’ll leave right after that.”

The man frowned but didn’t say anything. He just nodded and turned toward what Tessa assumed was the kitchen. There was no way he was leaving them alone in that house, so she quickly followed.

“Not that I mind or anything, but do you plan on eating naked?” The man grinned.

“I left my bag upstairs.” Tessa assumed that would have explained things, but the man just stared at her. “I’m not going back up there. That beast you have almost ate me. Who has a pet lion anyway?”

She didn’t get what was so funny, but evidently something she said was because the man about fell over himself laughing. He even had Nico giggling, although Tessa was pretty sure her son had no idea what he was laughing at. Not amused, she put her hand on her hip and stared at the stranger who had allowed them into his home. “Are you finished?” she asked when it looked like he was finally settling down.

ADULT EXCERPT

Tessa had a feeling she had truly gone off the deep end, but she couldn’t bring herself to care. Deep in her heart she knew Mitch was telling her the truth. She could feel it in her soul. To know that, after enduring a lifetime of loneliness, fate was finally giving her someone who was specifically made just for her was almost overwhelming. She loved her son to death, and he filled a void in her heart with unconditional love, but what Mitch was offering was totally different. He was offering her something that only a lover could. He filled something that she had no idea she had been missing until she had met him.

As Mitch continued his assault on her neck, Tessa did what she had wanted to do since the first day he ran down the stairs after her shirtless. She lifted his T-shirt and ran her hands over the smooth, warm skin of his stomach. She could feel every ridge and groove of his six-pack, and her mouth watered to trace each line with her tongue.

“That feels so good,” she moaned when Mitch made his way down her throat to her chest and took one of her nipples into his mouth. She could feel the moist heat of his mouth through her T-shirt and bra and wished at that moment that she was completely bare for him. Her need for him escalated, and she could feel moisture flooding her cunt, preparing herself to take him. Tessa wanted him inside her.

“Please, Mitch. It’s been so long. Don’t make me wait.”

Mitch didn’t respond. Instead, he lifted off her and grabbed the bottom of her T-shirt. Tessa sat up in the bed, eager to help him out. The sooner she got out of her clothes and helped him out of his, the sooner she could have him buried inside her. Her pussy clenched at the thought.

“How long, baby?” Mitch asked before he latched onto her other nipple. Now that her breasts were bare, Tessa nearly came from the sensation. Normally her nipples weren’t very sensitive, but the rasp of Mitch’s rough tongue went straight to her pussy and had her close to orgasm in no time. She had a feeling the roughness was a feline trait due to his lion. Mitch let off her nipple with a pop, and she wanted to scream and jerk his head back down. The bastard grinned at her then, letting her know he knew exactly what he was doing.

He trailed his tongue down her stomach and along the waistband of her jeans as he worked her button. “Tessa, answer my question. I don’t want to hurt you.”

What? Hurt me? It took her mind a minute to catch up. She couldn’t focus when Mitch was slowly lowering her zipper. The sound seemed to echo in the room. “Oh, um, since I found out I was pregnant with Nico.”

“You’re killing me, baby. Are you telling me you haven’t had sex in almost three years?”

“Yeah.” Tessa panted and lifted her hips, hinting for him to continue. “Is that a problem?”

“No, no problem. It just makes me want you even more to know that I’m going to be the first guy to give you pleasure in such a long time. I have a feeling I’m not going to last long once I’m inside you.”

“If it helps, I barely remember the last guy. We were only together for a couple weeks, and he was long gone before I realized I was pregnant. I didn’t even bother trying to find him to tell him about Nico.” What the hell? Why did I just tell him that? Shut up! Don’t say anything else. Tessa berated herself. Mitch probably thought she was a slut and a bad mother. She had never felt guilty over keeping something as important as a child from someone until she had just confessed it to Mitch. It wasn’t like she had known how to locate her son’s father to tell him, but she had to admit that, even if she had, she still would have kept it to herself. What if Mitch didn’t want her anymore now that he knew?

Her question was answered when he pulled her jeans and panties down her legs at the same time. His movements seemed frantic as he lifted himself off the bed and hurriedly ripped his own T-shirt and jeans off. Tossing his clothes across the room, he climbed back on Tessa and buried his nose in her crotch.

“Damn,” Mitch moaned. “You smell and taste like heaven. I could stay down here and lick this sweet pussy all day.”

He proved it by lapping at her clit with his rough tongue. Tessa screamed and lifted her hips off the bed. She buried her hands in his silky hair and held on as he swirled his tongue around her hole before thrusting it inside. She had been hovering on the edge of an orgasm, and each thrust of his tongue drew it closer and closer. Mitch replaced his tongue with one of his thick fingers while he sucked her clit into his mouth.